Imagery •Why is imagery important? -...
Transcript of Imagery •Why is imagery important? -...
Imagery
• Why is imagery important?– A classic example of internal mental representation– People are adept at storing and using images– Link between perception and abstract cognition
• Imagining is like perceiving• But there are some differences
Imagining is like perceiving• Functional similarities between pictures and images
– Scanning– Rotating– Zooming-in
• Imagery and language processes are different– Property verification (Kosslyn)– Interference between task and responses (Brooks)
• Physiological evidence for common areas• Similar patterns of sensitivity• Can’t always tell image from actual picture
Brooks’ interference study
Method of responding
“For each edge, is it onthe extreme top orbottom of the shape?”
“For each word, is ita noun or not?”
Task
Point to Yes/No on a page
Say Yes or No
EasyEasy
Hard
Hard
Imagery and verbal abilities use different resources
Good performance if task and response do not use the same resource
Differences between pictures and images• Mental distortions
– Influence of boundaries on perception– Simplification of object models
• Images can’t be reinterpreted– Images = perception + interpretation
Is X east/west of Y?
Congruent better thanHomogeneous
Homogeneous better than incongruent
Information about larger regions(counties) influencesjudgments about smallerregions (cities)
Images can’t be reinterpreted
What would this object look like ifrotated 90 degrees clockwise?
People usually cannot respond “seahorse” if using memorized image
People usually can respond “seahorse” if asked to draw image (frommemory), physically rotate paper, and then reinterpret drawing
Information is present in image, but hard to reinterpret flexibly